Spring-needle knitting-machine.



F. WILCOIVB.

SPRING NEEDLE KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION f|LaD1uNE1o.\9l5. RENEWED MAR. 2|. m7.

Patented Oct. 30, 1917.

L. www@ TO HEMPHILL MANUFACTURING CO.. A CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND.

SPRING-NEEDLE KNITTING-MACHINE.

Specoaton of Letters Patent.

Patented oet. so, yreir.

Original `application filed.- January 9, 1915, Serial No. 1,386\. Divided and this application filed .Tune 10,

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK WILCOMB, a citizen of the United States, residing at Norristown, Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spring-Needle Knitting-Machinesfof which the following is a specification.

My invention relates in the main to spring needle stocking knitting machines, in which a needle cylinder and cams have relative rotary and reciprocatory movements, though it will be understood that all features of my invention are not conined to machines of this general type.

For instance, some of the features may be used in an underwear machine where there is no reciprocatory movement, or

straight bar knitting machines.

The invention lconsists in the features and combination of parts hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims, this application being a division of my copending application Ser. No. 1386 filed Jan. 9,1915.

Figure holder or feeder ring and the beard pressers.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a modified form of the yarn holder or feeder and beard presser showing inserted feeder teeth or pro! jections. e l

Fig. 4l is a further sectional view taken through the solid part of the ring of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a diagram of the knitting elements.

In Letters Patent of the United States granted to me September 16, 1914, #1073309, I disclose sinkers for feeding the yarn to the needles in the ordinary way, and web holders having nibs across the tops of which the loops measured oft by the sinkers are evened up before being drawn into the fabric. In machines built in accordance with said patent the sinker formed stitches as they drop from the sinker ends lose their shape to same extent while passing down across the space occupied by the pressing and needle evening means, to the web holders or 7eveed up across the tops of the web holder nibs.

In my present invention the measuring o of the loops previous to being drawn into the fabric is accomplished by the con- 1 is a plan view of a form of yarn and these distortedl loops are leveled.

Serial No. 33,304. Renewed March 21, 1917. Serial No. 156,455.

new loops are completely measured off prel vious to drawing the newly formed loops into the body of the fabric.

So far as the feeding of the yarn to spring bearded needles is concerned, it may be pointed out that when sinkers are employed the yarn is sunk between the needles below the beards and held taut across the stems while the needles are being retracted until the beard is below the line of the sunken taut loops, thus insuring that the needle takes the yarn without splitting it.

When latch needles are employed, the latches in closing throw the yarn under the hooks of the needles, and no other provision is needed to insure the taking of the yarn by the'hooks.

It is true' that spring beard needles may be supplied with yarn direct, i. e., without sinkers, and each needle draw its own loop directly into the fabric, without previous measuring, in 'the same manner as with latch needles, but in this case the loop formation is open to the objections of latch needle knitting and the fabric produced is not equal in quality or appearance to true spring needle knitting where each new loop is measured in advance of casting od the old loop, and is drawn, into the fabric without rendering from needle to needle. Y

By my invention, while sinkers are not employed, but direct feeding of the needles is used instead, I am still able to get the results oftrue 'spring needle knitting in that each loop Y side is equal in length to all others, and the measured loop, when drawn into the fabric, is precisely the same in form and relation to other loops as in true spring needle knitting where sinkers are employed, and in which rendering of the yarn from needle to needle is avoided while drawing the new formed loops into the fabric.

. The difficulty of feeding successfully indel States trated in Letters Patent of the United granted to Clay, 40993 of 1862; J. Hellen, 11,995, November 28, 1854; 25,827, October 18, 1859, and the feeder 14 shown in patent of T. Fowler, 13,165, July 3, 1855, and also the patent to Crane, 1,027,034, May 21, 1912, it being understood that independently operated direct fed spring needles were old and common priorto the use of latch needles and later.

In my present machine Where the bearded needles are fed direct, I employ stationary -means outside the needle row-to hold the yarn, or feed it close again-st the needle stem without sinking it between the needles so that the needle beards will be sure to seize it on their downward travel, and for this purpose I employ a ring of xed projections or `teeth exterior to the needle circle, these being located close to and alternating inl position with lrelation to the needle stems but allowing the yarn to run freely between their inner ends and the said stems, the spaces between the teeth being deep enough to allow the needle beards to travel through in their up and down movement without pressing the beards. YIn the 'spaces betweenv these teeth are pressing means which may be either movable or fixed, in the latter case a presser device being used within the needle row to force the needles outwardly at the pressing point against the external presser -arrangement, but in Figs. 1 and means to close the beard in the same manner as in the solid ring presser shown in Letters Patent of the United States granted to me July 18, 1899, #629,116.

The spring beard needles slide vertically in grooves in the cylinder, being operated by cams in the usual way. The sliding web holders 1 are provided each with an upper nib or barb and a lower nose with a throat between them, as is usual.

The external yarn feeding or holding teeth for .holding the yarn against the needle stems may be of various forms, and

2 I show them as formed with a ring a, the teeth being shown at and while this ringk a is shown as solid in- Figs. 1 and 2 with the internal yarn feeding or'holding teeth b formed 'integrally therewith, the teeth may be inserted in radial grooves in the ring as at 6', in any suitable way or as shown by butts c on the outer ends of the tooth members entering a groove at c', and these bits or teeth may be of hardened steel.

In my application 831,797, April 14, 1914, I have shown a ring of similar construction, andf for a similar purpose, the radial grooves therein, however, holding three punchings or bits, two serving as feeders or holders for the yarn and one serving as a presser, these bits having movement, though as indicated in said application one or more Fig. 3, being held stationarys.

holders may be used for each needle. In my present invention I avoid the use of the sliding yarn feeders or holders, together with the means for operating them, and instead the lixed projections are employed, thus materially simplifying the construction while maintaining efficiency vin operation.

For pressing Il use lixed pressing means consisting of the surfaces d, Figs. 1 and 2, at the bottoms of the spaces between the teeth against which the beard contacts for pressing as the needle recedes.

When the xed form of external presser is employed, as shown, a device is used within the needle row for deflecting the needle outwardly at the pressing point to press the beard and make it pass through the old loop. This inner presser device may assume va'- rious forms, but in the particular construction shown it consists of a cam-shaped member e, Fig. 1, which is mounted on the clearer plate f within the needle row. This clearer plate is shown Adiagrammatically, and may be combined as usual with clamping means for the yarns which are out of action, and suitable cutting means for these yarns may be employed. These devices may be of any suitable construction.

The means for directing the yarn to the knitting elements includes a feed mouth 8 having walls or edges 9 which are close to the needle stems, and inclinng upwardly and outwardly, said walls or edges also diverging downwardly from each other, and ybetween thesev edges at their lower ends a rest 10 for the yarn extends in close proximity to the needle stems, the inclined edges serving to direct the yarn with certainty well under the needle beards when elevated to take the yarn and against the stems, and in respect to the yarn holding or feeding teeth or projections the rest is located as close as possible thereto so that the yarn will be delivered between the inner ends of ,these teeth and the needles, the inner ends or faces of the said projections being so close to the needles that the yarn extending across these inner faces will be fed or held thereby close against the needle stems, so that as the needle retracts to take the yarn the needle beard will be buried between the feeder teeth so that the beard can not split the yarn or seize knots or bunches, which ordinarily would tend to obstruct the free passage of the needle beard to grasp the yarn.

By feeding the yarn down low with the feed mouth 8, the object is to position it in the crevice between the inner end of the feeder projection b or b', as the case may be, and the stem of the needle.

It will be understood that in round 'and round knitting only one of the inclined yarn guide edges 9 is in service, while in reciproeating knitting for making heels and toes Y ing both inclined edges 9 are utilized, the yarn being directed to the right or left and beguided by one edge or the other in accordance with the direction of rotation of the needle cylinder.

A number of needles are shown in Fig. 5

in their position for measuring the new loops across the nibs of the web holders. By this l insure the maintenance of the loop lengths, as measured, until they are drawn successively into the fabric, because a resistance 'is interposed between the loopwhichl is being drawn into the fabric and the thread delivery point, this resistance being due to into the fabric by the further retraction of' the needle as illustrated in Fig. 5. Following the drawing of the new loops into the fabric the web holders are advanced to knock over the old loop and hold the fabric against rising with the advancing needles when these are` raised again. This completes the cycle of knitting operations.

I claim as my invention:

1. ln combination in a springneedle kniti ting machine, independently operated spring beard needles, means for feeding the yarn directly to the stems thereof, comprising yarn delivery means and a ring having a row of yarn feed projections outside the needle row to hold the yarn close to the needle stems and below the beards, and with the spaces between the projections for lthe free passage of the needle beards to grasp the yarn and beard presser surfacesk in said spaces fixed relatively to the needles, and a member within the needle row pushing the needles outwardly to make the beards contact with said presser surfaces, substantially as described.

for

2.r ln combination in a spring needle ma- ,i

chine, independentlyoperated spring beard needles, means for feeding the yarn directly to the stems thereof comprising yarn delivery means and a ring having yarn feed projections outside the needle row, and in line with the spaces between the needles and with spaces between said projections for the free passage of the needle beards to grasp the yarn, the walls defining the outer ends of said spaces serving aspressers for the needle beards, said projections and pressers being integral with said ring, sub.- stantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature Ain presence of two witnesses.

FRANK WILCOMB. Witnesses Epw. I-I. RICHARD,

` C. A. HARRIS. 

